Former Chesterfield mayor indicted over $2.3M farmland deal

Former Chesterfield Township mayor, committeeman and planning board member Lawrence Durr has been indicted on charges he used his official positions to profit on proposed mixed use development in the township. N.J. Attorney General's Office

CHESTERFIELD– Former Chesterfield Township mayor, committeeman and planning board member Lawrence Durr has been indicted on charges he used his official positions to profit on proposed mixed-use development in the township.

According to the indictment, announced today by Acting Attorney General John J. Hoffman, Durr allegedly entered into an undisclosed deal to sell development rights on a 104-acre farm to a developer, and then used his official positions to advance the developer’s plan to build a major residential and commercial project at another site in Chesterfield.

Durr, 64, bought the Old York Road farm from its owner in 2006 for $2 million, and subsequently sold the farm’s development rights to developer Renaissance Properties Inc. at a prearranged price.

Under the state's Transfer of Development Rights program, farmers owning preserved farmland can sell their land, while retaining title, to a developer that in turn uses those rights to build in another designated area in the town.

Renaissance needed the credits to develop the land it purchased in 2005 while remaining consistent with the township’s master plan, according to an attorney general’s press release.

As a result of the Renaissance deal, Durr received $2.3 million, meaning he effectively bought the farm for free and turned a nearly $400,000 profit. He retained two credits so he could build a house on the land for his daughter. The portion of land, along with the credits, is worth about $500,000, authorities said.

The grand jury charged Durr with official misconduct and speculating or wagering on official action or information, both second-degree charges that could result in Durr being sentenced to up to 20 years in prison, including a mandatory five years without parole, as well as a fine of up to double his “illegal gains.”

In addition, the state is filing a civil forfeiture action against Durr for the 104-acre farm, which the attorney general’s office alleges that Durr had long been interested in obtaining. The land is located next to his home, and he had farmed on the land for years through an agreement with its owners.

According to the attorney general’s office, Renaissance contracted with Durr to buy the TDR credits on the 104-acre farm from him for $65,000 per credit, in February 2006 even though Durr did not own the farm yet.

Renaissance paid a nonrefundable deposit of $150,000. The property was allocated 26 TDR credits, but Durr knew that allocation was low and could be appealed. In April 2006, Durr entered into an agreement with the owners of the parcel, the Martin Family Partnership, to purchase the farm for $2 million. Durr put $400,000 down and financed the balance through a mortgage.

He included his agreement with Renaissance as part of his loan application, and closed on the farm in July 2006.

Authorities allege that before the sale was finalized, Durr applied to the township planning board in May 2006 to increase the credits to the farm. Though Durr, who was then a member of the board and a committeeman, did not vote on the change, he did not formally recuse himself. At the hearing, he stepped down from the dais and represented himself on the application.

Later in September, Durr appeared before the Burlington County Transfer of Development Rights Bank Board, attempting to secure more credits for Renaissance by advocating the board sell them directly to the developer due to its difficulty obtaining them from local farmers.

According to a 2013 New Jersey Office of the State Comptroller report, Durr appealed to the county board without disclosing his personal stake in the project.

Authorities say his advocacy was contrary to his previous opposition to similar proposals. The board ultimately opted to auction credits instead of directly selling them. Renaissance bought the credits at the subsequent auction, per the release.

The following April, Durr, in his capacity as a planning board member, introduced an amendment to the zoning plan by reducing the number of credits that Renaissance, which was pursuing the development through subsidiary, needed to complete the project. The board approved the amendment.

In July 2007 Durr then submitted yet another proposal, this time in front of the township committee, to have Chesterfield purchase a parcel of land for $1.5 million from Renaissance’s subsidiary, Chesterfield LLC, which had entered into a $2.25 million contract to purchase the land and would now only pay $750,000 of the price.

Durr justified the move by saying the township could place a school on the site, known as the Wilkinson Parcel, to serve families in the new housing proposed at the development.

Despite hesitation to purchase the land for more than $1 million, the township ultimately approved the move though to date no school has been built at the site.

The case was investigated by the New Jersey State Police Official Corruption Bureau, and stemmed from the comptroller’s report.

According to the comptroller’s report, Durr, who served on the committee from 1991 through 2011 including several stints as mayor, was “instrumental” in Chesterfield establishing its TDR credit program, which was established in 1997.

Under the township’s program, the area designated for development comprised 560 acres located in the northwest corner of the township known as Old York Village, it was in this area that Renaissance purchased land intending to building more than 350 residential units and more than 40,000 square feet of retail space.

“State law strictly prohibits this type of surreptitious self-dealing by a public official,” said Acting Attorney General Hoffman. “As the township’s mayor and a member of the planning board, Durr knew exactly what this developer needed, and we allege that he corruptly capitalized on that information. In return for a farm he long coveted and a huge profit, he took several official actions to help this developer that never would have passed muster if their relationship was publicly known.”

Calls to Durr were not immediately returned.
Contact James McEvoy at jmcevoy@njtimes.com or (609) 989-5680.